Santa Clarita Valley Soft-landing Toolkit A User Guide that Facilitates Foreign Direct Investment 26455 Rockwell Canyon Road University Center Room 263 Santa Clarita, CA 91355 Phone: 661-288-4400 Fax: 661-288-4414 Email: [email protected] Website: www.scvedc.org @SCVEDC SCVEDC Soft Landing Toolkit Page 1 SCVEDC SCVEDC EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE BOARD MEMBERS Don Fleming, Co-Chairman Roberto Barragan Neal Weichel Valencia Acura Valley Economic Development Re/Max Valencia Center Calvin Hedman, Co-Chairman Philip M. Hart Hedman Partners Jon Collard Logix Federal Credit Union American Tax Incentives Dr. Dianne G. Van Hook, Chris Chase College of the Canyons Triple C Electric Mike Dean Tim Burkhart Chiquita Canyon Landfill Mitzi Like Six Flags Magic Mountain L/B/W Insurance & Financial Adam Gilbert Services, Inc. Greg McWilliams Disney Corporate Real Estate Newhall Land Jim Tanner Armando Jamjian Realty Executives/Valleywide Ken Striplin Encore Tax Consulting Group Inc Escrow City of Santa Clarita Tom Miller Craig Peters Larry Rasmussen Westfield Valencia Town Center CBRE Spirit Holding, Inc. Dennis King Tamara Gurney Roger Seaver KKAJ, LLP Mission Valley Bank Henry Mayo Newhall Hospital Casey Kirkman Michael DeLorenzo John Shaffery AQMS Santa Clarita Studios Poole & Shaffery, LLP Cal Naulls Jason Renno Laurel Shockley Community Bank The Renno Team, Southern California Edison William Sloan Wintrust Mortgage Arthur Sohikian California United Bank Steven Lavine AVS Consulting Randy Stabler California Institute of the Arts Rosalind Wayman Pride Auto Body Supervisor Michael D. Jeremy Stepan Ken Wiseman Antonovich Adage IT AMS Fulfillment James Combs Dale Donohoe Combs +Miguel Architecture Intertex General Contractors Henry Rodriguez William Murray State Farm Insurance Wells Fargo Bank SCVEDC Soft Landing Toolkit Page 2 Representing the united effort of regional industry and government leaders, the Santa Clarita Valley Economic Development Corporation (SCVEDC) works to provide an integrated approach to attracting, retaining and expanding a diversity of business and industry in the Santa Clarita Valley. Our overarching goals are to support the creation of high-paying jobs for our trained workforce, stimulate economic activity that grows the regional tax base and strategically position the Santa Clarita Valley and its businesses to better compete in the global economy. To accomplish these goals, the SCVEDC is tasked with the following deliverables: Actively pursue business expansion opportunities within targeted industries Facilitate access to and assist businesses with, utilizing available incentive and training programs Develop partnerships with public and private sector resources to aid business retention efforts Market the region as a prime location for expanding and/or relocating a business Provide accurate economic information to business decision-makers and site selectors Foster positive relationships with city, county, state and federal agencies and officials essential to the economic development process The SCVEDC business attraction and expansion efforts are focused on target industry clusters. To maximize our results, we continuously work to identify specific companies in target industry sectors that can thrive in the Santa Clarita Valley. Our efforts are focused on the following five clusters: Aerospace & Defense Medical Devices & Biotech Advanced Manufacturing Information Technology Digital Media & Entertainment A very special thank you to the following SCVEDC Interns who co-authored this Soft-landing Toolkit! Nathan Black (College of the Canyons / University of California at Berkeley) Mark De la Cruz (College of the Canyons) Marc Liff (University of California at Riverside / San Diego State University) Jessie Warme (College of the Canyons / University of California at San Diego) Please note that this toolkit is to be used for information purposes only. We recommend that you connect with us directly so we can answer any specific questions that you may have. Enjoy! SCVEDC Soft Landing Toolkit Page 3 Table of Contents Chapter 1: The Santa Clarita Valley: Still Golden™ ..................................................................................... 10 Chapter 2: Welcome to California............................................................................................................... 11 2.1 – Brief History ................................................................................................................................... 11 2.2 – Location and Geography ................................................................................................................ 12 2.3 – The California Advantage ............................................................................................................... 12 Chapter 3: Overview of Santa Clarita .......................................................................................................... 13 3.1 – Location in California ..................................................................................................................... 13 3.2 – Population ...................................................................................................................................... 13 3.3 – Government ................................................................................................................................... 16 3.4 – Economy ......................................................................................................................................... 16 3.5 – Technology and Innovation ............................................................................................................ 17 3.6 – Anchor Institutions: Education and Hospitals ................................................................................ 19 Education ............................................................................................................................................ 19 K-6 Education ...................................................................................................................................... 19 Hospitals .............................................................................................................................................. 22 3.7 – Infrastructure ................................................................................................................................. 23 3.8 – Sustainability .................................................................................................................................. 24 3.9 – Quality of Life ................................................................................................................................. 25 Chapter 4: Investing in the United States ................................................................................................... 26 4.1 – Process Overview and Considerations ........................................................................................... 26 4.2 – Santa Clarita Market Conditions .................................................................................................... 27 Site-Selection Process ......................................................................................................................... 27 Real Estate........................................................................................................................................... 27 Labor Market ....................................................................................................................................... 28 Business Environment ......................................................................................................................... 29 Permitting ........................................................................................................................................... 29 Utilities ................................................................................................................................................ 29 Local Taxation ..................................................................................................................................... 30 Strategic Partnerships ......................................................................................................................... 32 Business Ecosystem ............................................................................................................................ 33 SCVEDC Soft Landing Toolkit Page 4 Industry Clusters ................................................................................................................................. 35 Chapter 5: Employee Transitions ................................................................................................................ 37 Purchasing a Vehicle ............................................................................................................................... 37 Insurance – Covering You and Your Family ............................................................................................. 37 Education – Enrolling Children in School ................................................................................................ 38 Real Estate – Finding a Place to Live ....................................................................................................... 38 Chapter 6: Capital and Banking ..................................................................................................................